By: Hayley Loftus, Creative Content Producer
It is no secret that people like to consume their content by watching it. Whether streaming movies online, falling down YouTube rabbit holes, or scrolling through social media, the simple fact is that people are watching video on all platforms and devices. And it doesn’t seem like they will stop anytime soon. As someone whose mind is always on all-things-video, I know I certainly won’t.
Naturally, audiences prefer to consume branded content in the same way. Perhaps that’s why 90% of viewers said they want to see more video content from businesses and brands. (Wyzowl, State of Video Marketing). In fact, video marketing has become such an important part of the communications industry, professionals across the board are researching video statistics and demonstrating its effectiveness. Videos are engaging, easy to retain, and easily shareable, which make them a highly valued component to consider when planning your campaign.
Though video marketing has been around for decades through television commercials, the new forefront of video marketing is through social media—primarily, video-focused social media such as TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat.
Each platform boasts hundreds of millions of daily users and specific algorithms to reach certain audiences with your content. These social media platforms also offer native advertising. As opposed to pre-roll video advertising, native advertising seems more natural and may not even initially register as an advertisement due to matching the feed of a user.
Just opening these platforms on my phone, Tiktok had an advertisement after three videos for Redken, a hair product company, Instagram had an advertisement after two posts for Gatorade, and Snapchat had an advertisement after one story for The New York Times. Each video advertisement was similar to other content I would see on the app. For example, I love watching beauty influencers on Tiktok and got a corresponding advertisement that was enjoyable to watch right in my feed.
Studies done by Google measuring the effectiveness of video marketing indicate a seamless flow from viewing a video advertisement on social media and shopping, due to the “shop now” link provided along with many video advertisements. By receiving targeted video ads, consumers enjoy the experience and are able to engage with the brands they love most and most importantly: share.
The potential of content to go viral is always present on social media, and users happily share what makes them excited. Seeing creative video ads, whether they’re heartwarming or funny, grabs the attention of the consumer more easily than a still graphic ad or something that users must-read. Video marketing provides the unique opportunity to draw users in, speak to users on platforms they are familiar with, and gives the opportunity for users to share and follow up on the ads they are seeing, making it a crucial part of any campaign.